


cheap alcohol, cheap drugs, expensive gunpowder

by Anonymous



Series: mythical-soul's fics [6]
Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Alternate Universe - Grand Theft Auto Setting, Gunshot Wounds, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-23
Updated: 2015-12-23
Packaged: 2018-05-08 19:05:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5509586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He had a mission to accomplish.</p>
<p>Link was going to kill Rhett.</p>
            </blockquote>





	cheap alcohol, cheap drugs, expensive gunpowder

**Author's Note:**

> anon requested: _46 or 2 or 15 or 20. Any combination of any of those. One of them. None of them. All of them. Whatever just plz write something I love your fics so much :))_ , refering to the prompts of [this page](http://mythical-soul.tumblr.com/post/134888775552/send-me-in-some-prompts)! I hope you like it anon! <3

 

Link didn’t remember being this hot the last time he was in Los Santos.

He took his glasses off and with the leg, he pushed the hair that was falling over his eyes, before placing them back on his face and everything focused once again. His car was parked on the side of the dirt road, passenger door opened wide and Link was sitting there, looking at the city he thought he wasn’t going to see ever again.

It’s been a while since he had settled a foot down in Los Santos, not missing the loudness of the city (cars, motorcycles, shots fired), the distinguishable smell (cheap alcohol, cheap drugs, expensive gunpowder) or even the beautiful skyline with the sky painted red and pink and yellow, the sun hiding under the sea.

Some car passing quickly startled him but he composed himself before looking at the back seat of the car: a duffle bag with money, books, clothes and guns was sitting there, resting still on the leather seat. Link smiled before getting out of the car and stretching himself.

He closed the door behind him and walked to the pilot side, entering through the window. He turned on the radio and found his favorite station. After starting his car, he made his way deep into the city. He sang along to the old songs in the radio, ignoring the fact that there was traffic and that the city didn’t look beautiful even with the sunset decorating it with its colors. He didn’t really care about anything at the moment; he didn’t have any plans in staying too long.

He had a mission to accomplish.

He was going to kill one of the most powerful man in Los Santos.

Link was going to kill Rhett.

\-----

Entering Rhett’s network wasn’t that hard since he basically owned the whole city.

Everyone knew who Rhett was and that didn’t surprise Link at all: there were rumors on the street about how ruthless and heartless and cursed he was, how he had killed five men with a gun and two bullets and how he had tortured many until they give him what he wants –even after that, he just kills them.

The truth was that Link wasn’t scared.

He was already known in Los Santos.

He stepped into the old club he used to hang out and everyone that laid his eyes on him stopped for a moment, holding their breath. Link sat down and smiled at the barmaid who had short hair and freckles decorating her face. Sitting at the bar was a woman with long blonde hair and pale face, hat perched at her head –she could be recognizable anywhere. “Stevie,” he smiled at her and she only moved her eyebrow up.

“Link,” she looked at him with surprise shining up her eyes. She made a gesture to the barmaid and the next thing Link noticed was the cold beer pressing into his hand and even when he hadn’t order anything, he accepted it. “It’s been a while since I had seen you around here. What are you doing in Los Santos?”

“I heard you’re working with Rhett’s crew” and, suddenly, with the mention of the name, the whole place started to buzz up, talking and laughing as if the name was synonym of good.  Stevie looked up at him, leaning into the counter and closer to him as if she didn’t want people to hear.

“Why the sudden interest?”

“I want to be back in the business,” he shrugged and took a swing from the bottle of beer.

“Don’t you think he’s still upset then?” She asked and Link’s only answer was him shrugging.

Neither of them took their eyes away from the other and Stevie realized how much younger Link looked, as if living away from the big city had been doing him more good than bad as everyone thought. A few minutes afterwards, Link was sitting in Stevie’s Entity FX that appeared to be way too big for her yet she drove like an animal, crossing between cars and ignoring traffic and lights, and that had been something Link had missed terribly about her.

She parked in front of a small building in an empty street, it looked as if it was an old factory and Link knew that this had to be a safe house. It was way too small and too out of shape to be the crew’s residency.

When both of them made it up the stairs, a woman with blonde short hair and a bubbly attitude stop them. She was wearing a bright dress that, to Link’s eyes, didn’t fit well in the aesthetic of the classic crew –yet, who was him to be questioning fashion sense? Stevie took her arm and both of them made their way to the other side of the room, leaving Link standing there, looking around. He noticed other two guys sitting on the couch with their eyes fixed on him and gun parts on the table in front of them.

Without saying anything, Stevie appeared again and he followed her, ignoring the eyes in the back of his head.

The wood door with the hazy glass gave Link the sensation of the 80s detective series that his mother used to watch. Stevie knocked once, twice and three times until the deep voice resonated on the other side of it, letting them know that it was okay to enter.

Link knew it was Rhett behind the door even before Stevie opened it.

He hadn’t changed so much after all this time: his hair is a little longer, more blonde and his beard a lot bushier, he even looks lot tanner than the last time they saw each other. Rhett was wearing a deep green button up shirt and it somehow made his eyes look even brighter.

Before they could have said anything, Stevie was leaving the room, closing the door behind her.

Rhett got up from his chair, the papers on his hand falling back into the wooden desk. He stood in front of Link and observed him deeply before the name escaped from his lips. “Link.”

“Hey Rhett,” he smiled at the taller man. He wasn’t expecting the sudden arms wrapping around him and bringing him into a really tight hug along with the deep chuckles coming from Rhett’s chest.

“Look at you! You look great!” Rhett said, after letting him go. He noticed how short Link’s hair was as if he just had gotten a new hair cut, he noticed Link’s new glasses (the brown shades made his eyes look even bluer and Rhett had to stop himself from drowning into them), the smell of cigarettes on him. “Welcome to my small office,” he said and pointed one of the chairs at his desk.

Link sat down and smiled at Rhett, who was now leaning on his desk, arms crossed on his chest.

“What brings you around? I thought you left the city for good.”

Link shrugged and took his gun out of the inside pocket of his jacket, his eyes connecting with Rhett’s. He just left it on the desk before accommodating better on his seat, crossing his leg. “I missed everything. I guess I got bored of the old normal life, it wasn’t as fun as this.”

Rhett’s smile was wide. “Yeah, I know,” he said, before looking at the window where they could see part of the mountain and the suburbs. “I’m guessing you already know everything?”

“That you build an empire for yourself?” and Rhett nodded. “So I heard. Bet it was a lot of hard work.”

“It was but so worth it. The crew is awesome, they are really like family,” then he stopped, looking down at the ground before his eyes found Link’s. “Is still missing someone though.”

Link’s smile was wide, his hand nervously moving his hair out of his forehead. “That’s why I am here. I want to go back in the business,” there was a pause before he stared into Rhett’s eyes for a second. “Just like the old times.”

The blonde looked at him for a moment, no expression on his face until he held his hand out to Link, a smirk blooming. “There would be nothing that I’d love more, man.” Link shook Rhett’s hand that hard that it almost pushed Rhett from his balanced position on his desk. He apologized and Rhett laughed, shaking his head. “Where are you staying? Can you stay for a few hours? You know, to get to know everyone.”

“Sure,” Link answered, nodding. Both of them were in silence and before both of them went out of the office, Rhett thought that if he really looked at him -really looked at him- he could see sadness in his eyes.

A thought came into Rhett’s head but he shook it off.

            -----

Being around Rhett made Link feel so alive.

“Have to go somewhere, want to come me?” Rhett told him while putting on the jacket of his suit and even when Link told him that he was way too dress down, he shook his head and taking Link’s wrist on his hand, Rhett pulled him out of the couch. “It’s going to be fun.”

Riding in Rhett’s car, trying to escape the police was more than fun. Link had forgotten how the gun felt under his hand, shooting out of the window, the car moving in such speed that made Link queasy but he didn’t care –hearing Rhett’s laugh loud was more than beautiful.

Getting out of the car with Rhett and feeling the mood shift around the gang they were visiting was incredible, appearing on late night clubs and noticing the eyes of everyone in them along with the respectful salutes, hearing the news and the corrupted polices mumbling their names with fear –the feeling Link got out of all of them was something he always came back to, as if it was a drug.

(As if Rhett was Link’s drug

Yet, he needed to remember that he couldn’t get addicted to something that wasn’t going to last forever).

Link’s first heist was the actual test to know if the crew could trust him.

After weeks of preparation, Link woke up and sat down on the bed, feeling an awful weight on his shoulders.

He looked around the room, noticing though the windows, the dawn starting to hit. Most of the city lights were on even when the sky was clear enough for them to be off. He looked at his phone, realizing that he had a missed call with a North Carolina code that he recognized perfectly. Link ignored his phone and lied back on the bed, looking at the ceiling.

The reminder on why he was there only appeared at night, haunting him.

(Because when he was with Rhett or the crew, it just vanished.)

After getting up, a trip to the bathroom and getting ready with his own Kevlar vest, he left the apartment and drove to the crew’s safe house. More cars than usual were parked outside of it and Link recognized both Rhett and Stevie’s without needed to get a second glace. When he made it up the stairs, he greeted Lizzie with a smile and went straight to Rhett’s office, whose door was half open. Link knocked and after receiving a joyful answer, he entered.

There he found Rhett, shirtless and looking himself in the full length mirror that was leaning against the wall. Link stopped short when he noticed the old scars he remember tracing with his own fingers and new ones that he didn’t even recognize.

“Hey,” Rhett greeted him, putting his shirt on. “Are you excited for today?”

“Really excited,” Link answered, leaning on the armchair, trying to take his eyes off Rhett yet it was something that he couldn’t control: this was the man he had to kill. “I’m nervous.”

Rhett laugh made Link’s heart jolt on his chest. “You’ll be alright, we got your back” and before Link could say anything else, Rhett continued. “And you got ours, right?” The serious tone that went with the question felt as if Rhett just shot Link straight in the heart.

_Of course_ was all he could mumble and he wasn’t sure if it was more of a truth than a lie.

After a quick reunion to remember everyone what they had to do and a short but sweet speech from Rhett’s part, they left the safe house, mask in their bags along with their guns. Link stood for a moment at the end of the stairs when everyone had already left the building. He looked at them and he swore they looked perfect, their dark suits and dresses on point, their contrast of their tattoos and scars in their tanned skin –Link questioned himself if someday he could be part of something that gorgeous.

Rhett turned around and noticed Link standing in silence behind them. He opened the passenger door and moved his head before asking _are you coming?_ with such a sweet tone that Link had stop himself from smiling before running and climbing into the car.

Their car ride was silent, not even the radio was on. They didn’t share any words on the way to the bank but when Rhett parked in a back alley, he asked Link to be still and before he knew it, Rhett was placing carefully an earpiece on his ear, cold fingers against his warm face. “This is how we’ll communicate,” Rhett said, still leaning close to Link. “Your code name will be Neal.”

“That’s my last name,” Link frowned at Rhett, who was just smiling.

“And that’s why you’ll answer to it more than any other code name” and with that, he got out of the car and Link had to follow him quickly. When they made it out of the alley and saw the bank in the street in front, Link looked around and noticed everyone placing their bags on their backs, shotguns in their hands and masks proud on their faces. 

When Rhett gave the signal, the heist happened in a blur of adrenaline, bullets and loud laughs.

They moved like a well-oiled machine, grabbing money and shooting the cameras and keeping everyone down, telling them that they would be alright (and they were alright, Rhett didn’t like shooting innocents). Link followed the boys down to the safe, placing all the money they could carry on their backs, hearing Jen’s voice telling them that the police was outside and Rhett’s laugh clear, telling them that they will be alright.

The explosion resonated around the bank just when they were making their way out through the back door. Link ran, Chase and Stevie next to him, coming out of the alley and noticing the few police cars parked there, waiting –that didn’t stop them.

An exchange of bullets started between them, some of them hitting metal and bricks, others breaking glass and going through skin and bones. Link could listen clearly to the orders that were coming through his ear, following Stevie close and suddenly, when his back hit the metal door of a car so he could hide and reload, he heard another bang close to him and he saw another body leaning onto the car next to him.

(The blonde hair appearing over the mask made it pretty obvious that it was Rhett.)

Link pointed his gun at Rhett, thinking that he could do it, that he could kill him at that moment, not thinking it twice and just pulling the trigger. He would forget about everything, he could just grab the car and return to North Carolina, get his money and forget about everything.

Rhett’s eyes fell on him and Link pulled the trigger.

The cop behind Rhett fell on his back, the bullet right into his forehead.

The gratitude in Rhett’s eyes was something Link missed; they didn’t say anything, they just came up from their hiding spot and started shooting at the other cops that were waiting.

The sounds of motors roaring in the distance and in the alley close to them were more than a relief.

When Becca yelled that they needed to leave _now_ , Link grabbed Rhett’s hand and pulled him away from the car, bag heavy on his back. They ran to the car and as soon as their bodies were mostly inside of it, they drove away, away to the safe house, away from the city and the police.

Away, safe.                                 

It took them long to finally disappear from the radar, police finally leaving them alone.

Rhett parked in the back of a barn, night over them.

Both of them were breathing heavily, even when they stop being chased by the cops minutes ago. Link let his head fall back against his seat, hearing Rhett talking over the earpiece to his crew but his voice echoed around the small car. Link turned sideways to look at the two bags of money in the back seat along with their masks in the floor.

Then, his eyes fell on Rhett.

The jacket has been discarded many hours ago, the button up shirt losing a few of his buttons. Rhett smiled back at Link and Link couldn’t help himself but move closer and press his own lips against Rhett’s, his hand flying to Rhett’s nape, his fingers digging softly into his blonde hair. It was almost brutal the way their lips pressed against each other, the way their teeth clattered in unison, the way their hands flew to touch any inch of their skin that they could find.

Link was kneeling uncomfortably on his seat, one hand over Rhett’s shoulder and his other pulling his hair softly when Rhett’s mouth started moving towards his neck. One of Rhett’s hands was still on the back of Link’s seat and the other sneaking his way under Link’s shirt.

They were still riding high on the adrenaline of the heist and Link was more than ready to ride it with Rhett on its way down. Soft pants were the only thing they could hear but Link was more than sure that Rhett could perfectly hear the strong beat of his heart, as if it wanted to come out of his chest.

“Link,” Rhett moved away and Link whimpered at the loss of touch.

“We need to talk about what happened, the fight, _we_ _have_ ,” Link slurred, moving away from Rhett’s lips.

Yet, as if he didn’t hear him, Rhett called his name again. “Link.”

“What, Rhett? What now?” Link placed both of his hands on Rhett’s neck, his thumbs on his jaw. He was starting to feel dizzy but he was sure that it was the sweet taste of crashing down.

Rhett moved his hand away from under Link’s shirt and when both of them looked down, there was something sticky and hot and dark on his fingers. “You’re hurt,” Rhett mumbled and before he could say anything else, Link was giggling in a way that was almost hysterical. The whimpers that were coming out of him where closer to pain than pleasure and Rhett knew that Link wasn’t good dealing with blood, not his own or anyone else. “Hey, Link, look at me.”

After cleaning his bloody hand, he placed both of his hands on Link’s face, making him look straight into his eyes.  Link’s head was now resting back again on the seat, his body tiredly falling towards the seat, loopy smile appearing on his face.

“You’ll be alright, okay?”

Rhett noticed the tears falling from those bright eyes in the dark. “Okay,” he whispered back.

When Rhett started the car, everything happened in a blur of dizziness, city lights and loud voices on his ear. Link started letting out soft apologies about what happened years ago, about their fight and Rhett just shushed him down, telling him that they could talk it out later, they had time, he _wasn’t_ going to die.

Stevie was the one waiting for them in _I’m-just-a-old-house-there’s-no-one-hiding-in-here-but-probably-an-old-southern-grandman_ safe house, and as soon as she heard the motor approaching in the distance, she got up and ran out the house.

Rhett was already out of the car, blood on his pants and Link leaning heavily against him, Rhett’s arm holding him upright –there was a massive blood spot on the side of his dark shirt and Stevie couldn’t contain a gasp. She was going to run out when Morgan was already running past her, helping Rhett with Link’s weight.

Their eyes crossed and Stevie didn’t say anything.

Both of them knew something but their lips didn’t move.

When Link woke up, he felt alright.

He wasn’t sure how much time there has been between getting shot in the heist and waking up, but he didn’t feel sick or in pain –and that could be thanks to the medicine that was coming through the line attached to his hand, needle into his vein.

He moved slowly, feeling the sting on the wound. He noticed the room being empty, both wooden doors closed but Link could hear sound coming from one of them; he listened to the sounds of water running in a sink, soft clicks of a plastic against the ceramic, more water running. It was almost relaxing and Link was falling asleep to the sounds yet the door opened and Rhett appeared, passing a towel on his neck and Link deduced he had just taken a shower and shaved part of his beard, since his hair and beard were damp.

(Later he would know that Rhett had been sitting next to him night and day, and that it had been Alex who convinced him to get something to eat and get a shower.)

Rhett stopped on his tracks when he saw Link’s blue eyes watching him silently, a small but warm smile on his face. “Link,” he exclaimed quietly, leaving the towel in the bedside table before sitting on the edge of the bed, his hand flying to touch Link’s face. “How are you feeling?”

Link didn’t even flinch when Rhett touched his face instead, leaning towards it. “I feel fine.”

“Man, you gave us such a scare,” Rhett said, his hand now resting on Link’s arm, as if it wanted to hold Link’s hand but wouldn’t dare. “The heist was successful though. You make a great addition to the crew.”

Link was silent, looking straight at Rhett’s eyes before asking without hesitation. “Is that a formal invitation?”

Rhett smiled and he looked down at Link’s hands, just were the plastic lines with blood and liquid came into his skin, hidden under a small tape “Yes, it is. You fit well” and there was a _with me_ left hanging and Link was sure that if he pressed his lips against Rhett’s he would taste the words.”

“We are going to ignore our past?” There was a moment of silence before Rhett answered.

“We can talk it later, when you’re not hurt anymore.” He moved closer to Link and pressed his lips against Link’s hands tenderly. “Welcome to the crew, Neal.”

“Thanks,” Link answered, smile on his face but he wasn’t really feeling happiness. The words _kill him, kill him, you have to kill him_ were repeating on his mind, even on his restless sleep.

_Kill him_ , you’re part of the crew, _kill him_ , you’re feeling guilty, _you have to kill him_ , you’re feeling _love_.

\----

The first change was how the crew looked at him.

As soon as they were able to return to the city, they didn’t take Link to his apartment –instead, they took him to an apartment complex that was way too empty and that’s when Link realized that that was _their_ building, this was where _they_ lived, where _they_ planned everything, _they_ were letting him inside of their fortress.

Rhett gave him the keys to his new apartment, in the same floor as his and Link didn’t question it.

The penthouse was the crew’s common place and Link felt powerful, looking out the top to bottom windows that showed the city to their _feet_ , under them, and he thought that it couldn’t be a better representation of Rhett’s empire. Now, he got used to being there most of the time, either eating or planning heists or keeping tracks of their allies and enemies.

He started helping Rhett planning heists and even helped the crew working on their own ones, giving them advice and talking them through bad and dangerous ideas. Link noticed that when Rhett wasn’t around, they would come up to him, asking him questions, searching for answers.

Link felt dizzy when Stevie called him _boss_ for the first time and he might have had a panicked expression on his face because she laughed, telling him that it was alright. “It’s alright,” she told him, hand on his shoulder. “You’re kind of our second boss, Rhett adores you and we know we can trust you.”

Link nodded and his stomach was turning and his heart was feeling heavy.

The second one was how the outsiders looked at him.               

Whenever they were visiting someone, Rhett made sure to leave clear that Link was part of the crew, that he now owned this city in some way, that wherever he stepped, people should know that it wasn’t just Link Neal but Link Neal, part of the most powerful crew in Los Santos and whoever dared to mess with him, would die.

Seriously, they would die.

Link felt part of the crew, that was for sure, but the way Rhett kept him close to his side made him queasy. After their kiss in the car that night, their relationship had mutated into something strange, something without a name that, when the reminder of his mission came up to his mind, he would forget it.

They way Rhett looked at him, the way his soft touches melted into Link’s skin as if it was meant to be, the way Rhett would worry about him when he had been working on some papers for hours upon hours, the way Rhett left unspoken words of adoration and love hanging in the air, all of them made Link feel good.

It made him feel something he had been missing all this time.

Then, things started to change with the days passing by.

Rhett kissed him after they had started a gang fight in the desert, miles away from the city. He came up to Link, bloody and battered, and without any hesitation and any warning, he threw his gun in the floor and after placing his hands on each side of Link’s shoulder, he pressed his lips against Link’s.

“Can we have this?” He asked afterwards and Link blinked a few moments, trying to understand. “Us.”

“Yes” and Link answered because of inertia, he answered because something inside of him had been pushing him to get closer and closer to Rhett in a way that wasn’t doing him good. The fight between his brain ( _you have to kill him_ ) and his heart ( _but you love him_ ) was starting as a small headache in the back of his head –he wasn’t sure when it was going to bloom into a migraine, into a bigger problem, but he decided to ignore it, taking painkillers (sweet words, kisses and touches that made him _happy_ ) and drowning himself in them.

He had been walking through the empty penthouse, everyone being away at the moment but him and Rhett. Link had been walking to Rhett’s office when his phone rang, a new message. When he saw the number and the text, he deleted it almost immediately yet it didn’t matter because the words were now burned on his mind.

[19:58] _have you done it already? we’re waiting_

Link breathed deeply and walked to the office where Rhett was working. He found Rhett hunched over his desk, reading some files wide open on top of it. He didn’t look up until Link sat on the desk, looking at the dark but lighted up city behind Rhett’s chair.

They didn’t move for a while until Link felt Rhett’s hand on his tight, chair moving back and Rhett appearing in front of him. His hands moved to Link’s waist and just stayed there, both of them looking at each other in silence until Rhett mumbled what’s _wrong_? and Link took a deep breath.

“I need you,” he answered, moving closer, his nose touching Rhett’s, their lips inches close. “I need you,” Link said again, his voice breaking softly and Rhett didn’t notice Link’s hands on his biceps, his fingers digging into his shirt. He wasn’t sure if he was begging but he needed Rhett, he needed him close; he needed his drug to quiet down his demons. Link wasn’t sure if it was because he wanted to prove himself that this was nothing, that Rhett’s love didn’t affect him, that he was able of doing it, killing him, _killing him_ -

Rhett closed the gap between them with a sweet kiss, almost tender. He pressed himself against Link, pulling him closer and his heart grew when he heard Link’s small hum. He took off Link’s glasses and looked straight at him, before saying “I need you too.”

And front there, there moved in hurry to the bedroom, leaving clothes thrown in the floor, bumping with almost everything on their way there, making them giggle and gasp. Link pushed Rhett to the bed, locking the door behind him and then, crawling on top of Rhett.

“I need you,” Rhett gasped into Link’s lips, fumbling with Link’s belt and pants. Link moved away slowly and observed Rhett under him and he couldn’t help but trace with his fingers Rhett’s arms, shoulders (marked with scars and freckles in a way that made Link lose his breath), and he just held him there, his thumbs under his jaw and he just thought _I can kill him right here, I could kill him right here and leave, no one would know, I could kill him, I could_ \- “Link.”

“I love you,” Link said, his voice with a defeated tone that Rhett couldn’t really put his finger on. Rhett looked up at him, green eyes finding blue and lips meeting other lips. His hands pressed into Link’s skin as if he wanted to mark him, to leave bruises as if they were a reminder that he loved him back, that he needed him too.

And right there, Link forgot about his mission, about the guilt, about everything. There was one thing in his mind that resonated loud and clear _, you love him, he loves you, love, love_ -

Link woke up before Rhett.

He observed him for a while, in a blurry haze without his glasses. Rhett was lying on his back, breathing deeply but quietly, with faint but visible marks appearing on his skin, blending together with the scars, of bullet wounds and knife cuts, and freckles a little shade darker. He observed him for a moment and remembered all the words that people used to describe him: _ruthless and heartless and cursed_ and he thought that they couldn’t be more wrong.

He got up from bed and, thanks to the faint light coming through the window he reached for some clothes that fitted him, finding his pants, his boxers and Rhett’s shirt. He reached for his phone on his pocket, realizing he had many missed calls from the same number and many texts waiting to be read.

[00:08] _heard you are getting close to the man_

[01:45] _you better answer our calls_

[03:42] _the deal’s off neal_

[05:53] _you’re a dead man_

[06:29] _and your crew too_

Link got out of the room and closed the door behind him, his back pressing up against the door.

“Hey,” he heard a voice and looked up at Candace, who was looking at him with a raised eyebrow, cup of coffee on her hand. Link didn’t respond and walked pass her, reaching for his apartment keys on his pocket.

She frowned when she heard the front door closing and thought that maybe they had a fight, thought that maybe he needed time to cool off, but that was pushed away when Link entered the penthouse again, gun in hand and bag on his back.

“What are you doing with that gun?” She asked and her voice had a worried tone that made Eddie and Alex appear, confused expression on their faces. Candace called him but he just entered the room again, finding Rhett sitting down on the bed, phone on his hand.

Rhett looked up and was about to smile at him, about to say _good morning sunshine_ but noticed Link’s expression. “You look like you’re about to cry. What happened?” and when Link let his bag fall on the floor, that’s when he noticed the gun on his hand. “What are you doing?”

Link crawled on the bed, on top of Rhett and, after turning the gun towards himself, pressed it into Rhett’s palm. Rhett was looking at Link wide eyed, trying to understand what was happening. “Kill me.”

“What?”

“Kill me, Rhett. Do it,” Link said, almost sounding upset. “I don’t deserve this.”

“Link, hey, what are you saying that?” He said, trying to push the gun down, away from them but Link’s hands around him were strong and wouldn’t give out.

Link took a deep breath, as if that was going to stop the tears from building up on his eyes. “I never left the business, I became a fucking mercenary in the south and I’m being paid to kill you.” Link shook his head and looked down, his forehead pressing against the cold metal. “I can’t do it. I love you and I-I’m weak and-”

The laugh that Rhett let out made Link stop short; he looked up at Rhett and saw the wide smile on his face. The confusion that was plastered on Link’s face helped Rhett to move the gun down and away, throwing it to the other side of the bed. “Link, don’t you think that I knew?”

“What?” It was Link’s time to question what was happening.

“Since the moment you stepped into the city, I already knew what your mission was. Why you think Stevie was in the old bar we used to hang out? She’s fancier than that” and Rhett chuckled at his own comment. “Why you think we were in a safe house when you came into the city? Why do you think I let you close?”

“You think I’m weak” and that was more an affirmation than a question, yet Rhett quickly shook his head.

“I have seen you kill many people, Link, perfectly and without making a mess. You’re not weak, it’s just-” and Rhett brought his hands towards Link’s side, caressing the scar that was left on his right side on their first heist together. “Before we fought or even left the city, you told me you loved me. I wanted to know if that was still truth.”

Both of them looked at each other in silence until Link let his head fall into Rhett’s shoulder, taking deep breathes. “I can’t believe you,” he pushed him softly and Rhett giggled before caressing Link’s back softly. He looked up at the door and shushed his crew away, who had been looking at the scene in case things got bad.

“I still think you should kill me,” Link mumble into Rhett’s shirt. “They are coming for me.”

 “We’ll deal with them. I told you –if someone messes with you, they would die. Don’t worry now, we’ll be alright.” Rhett’s fingers on his hair made Link relax and lean onto Rhett. Link felt as if a heaviness had been taking out off his chest and he could breath easily for the first time in months.

Everything was going to be alright.

\----

The whole crew observed how the men were starting to wake up.

Link was sitting in a chair, legs crossed, the shelves of his shirt rolled up and metal bat on his hand. He observed his employers wake up and look at him with wide eyes before _trying_ to escape –Chase and Eddie had done well with the knots on their hands and chest.

“Welcome to Los Santos, misters,” he smiled, his hand going up to his glasses and pulling them up his nose. The men started screaming at him, cursing but they quickly fell quiet when the crew started moving out and Link got up from his chair. “It was alright that you wanted to kill me, I mean, I got your money and your guns,” he smiled but when he pressed the top of his bat on one of the man’s chest, his mouth became a thin line, “but threatening my crew was a bad decision.”

Stevie was the last one walking out the warehouse when she heard something metallic hitting flesh and then a scream, which was muffled when she closed the door behind her. She just smiled at Rhett, who was waiting outside, leaning on the car. They shared a knowing look before nodding their heads. She smiled at him and walked to her car, where Lizzie was already waiting with Enzo on her lap. Rhett looked at his clock and leaned against the passenger door, waiting for Link.

It was an half hour later when Link came out from the warehouse, white shirt bloody just as his bat but he had the brightest smile on his face. “Here there, gorgeous,” Rhett greeted him and gave him a cloth that Link used to clean his face and arms. “Had fun?”

“You wouldn’t believe it,” he answered and when he was clean, Link felt Rhett’s hands on his shirt, pulling him closer. Link felt faint but the feeling of Rhett’s arms reading to hold him was everything he needed. They looked at each other for a while before Link spoke again. “And to think that when I came here I was going to kill _you_ , not them.”

Rhett raised an eyebrow before leaning to give soft pecks to Link. “Oh, things change.”

“They do, don’t they?” Link answered before wrapping his arms around Rhett’s neck and before he knew it, Rhett moved them and opened the back door before throwing Link into the back seat, velvety seat under his back. He thought that he wasn’t staying long in Los Santos when he first set foot down in the city.

Link had a mission to accomplish.

He had to kill one of the most powerful man in Los Santos.

Yet, he couldn’t and that was the best decision he had ever taken in his life.

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> follow me @[mythical-soul!](http://http://mythical-soul.tumblr.com/)


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